U.S. patent number 8,627,740 [Application Number 13/060,874] was granted by the patent office on 2014-01-14 for robot for harsh outdoor environment.
This patent grant is currently assigned to ABB Research Ltd.. The grantee listed for this patent is Johan Gunnar, John Pretlove, Charlotte Skourup. Invention is credited to Johan Gunnar, John Pretlove, Charlotte Skourup.
United States Patent |
8,627,740 |
Skourup , et al. |
January 14, 2014 |
**Please see images for:
( Certificate of Correction ) ** |
Robot for harsh outdoor environment
Abstract
An industrial robot adapted for a harsh environment involving
exposure to salt water. A robot arm includes a plurality of arm
parts movable relative each other about a plurality of joints.
Electrical motors move the arm parts. A salt water proof coating on
at least a portion of an exterior of the robot arm parts.
Inventors: |
Skourup; Charlotte (Drammen,
NO), Gunnar; Johan (Oslo, NO), Pretlove;
John (Sandvika, NO) |
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Skourup; Charlotte
Gunnar; Johan
Pretlove; John |
Drammen
Oslo
Sandvika |
N/A
N/A
N/A |
NO
NO
NO |
|
|
Assignee: |
ABB Research Ltd. (Zurich,
CH)
|
Family
ID: |
40790734 |
Appl.
No.: |
13/060,874 |
Filed: |
April 22, 2009 |
PCT
Filed: |
April 22, 2009 |
PCT No.: |
PCT/EP2009/054782 |
371(c)(1),(2),(4) Date: |
February 25, 2011 |
PCT
Pub. No.: |
WO2010/022991 |
PCT
Pub. Date: |
March 04, 2010 |
Prior Publication Data
|
|
|
|
Document
Identifier |
Publication Date |
|
US 20110154934 A1 |
Jun 30, 2011 |
|
Current U.S.
Class: |
74/490.01;
901/50; 901/43; 74/490.03 |
Current CPC
Class: |
B25J
19/0075 (20130101); B25J 19/0058 (20130101); B25J
19/0079 (20130101); Y10T 74/20317 (20150115); Y10T
74/20305 (20150115) |
Current International
Class: |
B25J
17/00 (20060101) |
Field of
Search: |
;74/490.01,490.02,490.03,490.05,490.06
;901/46,47,43,44,45,49,50 |
References Cited
[Referenced By]
U.S. Patent Documents
Foreign Patent Documents
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|
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|
|
|
|
0937551 |
|
Aug 1999 |
|
EP |
|
0988939 |
|
Mar 2000 |
|
EP |
|
1576689 |
|
Jun 1969 |
|
FR |
|
63065973 |
|
Mar 1988 |
|
JP |
|
544549 |
|
Jan 1977 |
|
SU |
|
WO-96/08347 |
|
Mar 1996 |
|
WO |
|
WO-00/69601 |
|
Nov 2000 |
|
WO |
|
Other References
Official Action issued by Russian patent office Mar. 15, 2013, in
connection with counterpart application 2011111416 (With
Translation). cited by applicant .
Dan Rogers; "At arms's length"; Engineering for Innovators in
Technology, Manufacturing and Management; Feb. 2008; pp. 24-26.
cited by applicant .
PCT/ISA/210--International Search Report--Nov. 24, 2009. cited by
applicant .
PCT/ISA/235--Written Opinion of the International Searching
Authority--Nov. 24, 2009. cited by applicant .
PCT/IPEA/409--International Preliminary Report on
Patentability--Oct. 13, 2010. cited by applicant.
|
Primary Examiner: Fenstermacher; David M
Attorney, Agent or Firm: Venable LLP Franklin; Eric J.
Claims
The invention claimed is:
1. An industrial robot adapted for a harsh environment involving
exposure to salt water, comprising: a robot arm comprising a
plurality of arm parts movable relative each other about a
plurality of joints; electrical motors configured to move the arm
parts; and a coating on at least a portion of an exterior surface
of the robot arm parts, the coating comprising nano particles
configured to bind salt water to continuously cover at least a
portion of the exterior surface of the robot arm with a layer of
salt water.
2. The robot according to claim 1, further comprising: rubber
gaskets around the joints.
3. The robot according to claim 1, further comprising: a source of
over pressurized air inside the robot arm.
4. The robot according to claim 1, wherein the robot is arranged to
be remotely operated.
5. The robot according to claim 1, wherein at least one section of
the robot arm is coated with a layer to withstand movement of salt
ions through the layer and into underlying material of the arm.
6. The robot according to claim 1, wherein at least one section of
the robot arm or joint part is coated with a corrosion resistant
thin film comprising a compound containing at least one metal
species from the group of: titanium, chromium, nickel.
7. The robot according to claim 6, wherein the at least one section
of the robot arm or joint part is metal.
8. The robot according to claim 1, wherein the joints comprise a
first axis joint that is sealed with a single oil seal or with two
or more oil seals in series to exclude ingress of water when
immersed up to 1 meter.
9. The robot according to claim 1, wherein the joints comprise at
least one joint that is enclosed by a flexible bellows-shaped
shroud, fastened with a water tight seal to a part of the robot arm
on each side of the joint.
10. The robot according to claim 1, further comprising: at least
one camera mounted on an arm of the robot.
11. The robot according to claim 1, further comprising: at least
one camera mounted on an arm of the robot, wherein at least one of
the at least one camera is arranged configured for movement and
focussing on a point in space in a vicinity of a tool center point
for a tool arranged mounted on said industrial robot.
12. The robot according to claim 1, further comprising: at least
one camera mounted on the arm of the robot, wherein a point in
space in a vicinity of a tool center point for a tool arranged
mounted on said robot may be configured or selected from a number
of different tool center points.
13. A method for protecting an industrial robot from salt water,
comprising: providing at least a portion of an exterior surface of
a robot arm with a salt water proof coating; moving the robot arm
to at least one of a washing or coating booth where at least one of
washing or coating is performed; and optionally re-applying, after
performing at least one of washing or coating, a salt water roof
coating to the robot.
14. The method according to claim 13, further comprising: moving
the robot arm to a specific area and regularly washing off salt
water from the robot; blowing off dirt including salt crystals from
the robot utilizing air jets; and re-applying, after the washing, a
salt water proof coating to the robot.
15. A robot system, comprising: a plurality of robots mounted on at
least two gantry cranes, wherein the robots each comprise a robot
arm comprising a plurality of arm parts movable relative each other
about a plurality of joints, electrical motors configured to move
the arm parts, and a coating on at least a portion of an exterior
surface of the robot arm parts, the coating comprising nano
particles configured to bind salt water to continuously cover at
least a portion of the exterior surface of the robot arm with a
layer of salt water.
16. An installation for offshore oil and gas extraction or
production, comprising: at least one robot comprising a robot arm
comprising a plurality of arm parts movable relative each other
about a plurality of joints, electrical motors configured to move
the arm parts, and a coating on at least a portion of an exterior
surface of the robot arm parts, the coating comprising nano
particles configured to bind salt water to continuously cover at
least a portion of the exterior surface of the robot arm with a
layer of salt water; and oil and gas extraction or production
equipment.
17. The installation according to claim 16, wherein at least one
robot is arranged to carry out monitoring and maintenance
instructions, wherein at least one robot comprises control and
communication equipment for remote control of the robot, and
wherein at least one robot comprises salt water protection features
on the structure of said robot.
18. The installation according to claim 16, further comprising: a
washing booth arranged to wash and/or coat the at least one robot
with a corrosion inhibiting fluid.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
This application is the national phase under 35 U.S.C. .sctn.371 of
PCT/EP2009/054782 filed 22 Apr. 2009.
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an industrial robot including a
plurality of arms movable relative each other about a plurality of
joints and electrical motors moving the arms. The present invention
also relates to a method for protecting an industrial robot from
salt water.
In addition to those above, the invention also relates to the use
of an industrial robot in an offshore oil and gas installation.
PRIOR ART
Within the field of oil and gas, robotics has generally been used
only sporadic. Oil companies continuously seek to create and
increase business value of oil and gas installations, whilst also
maintaining an absolute focus on Health, Safety and Environment
(HSE). To address these issues, a major rethink on the conventional
operation and support of oil & gas installations is required.
It is well documented that industrial robots with flexible
manipulators are well suited to conduct dangerous and labor
intensive tasks in hazardous conditions with a high degree of
accuracy.
Conventional industrial robots are not designed for offshore use.
Even though there is a trend to develop robot for harsh environment
such as to be explosion safe, water resistant, and to tolerate low
temperature below the freezing point and high temperatures, there
still is a way to go to combine all of these features and to make
the robots ready for offshore use. One of the main challenges to
overcome is to make the robot resistant to salt water and
especially, corrosion and other damages from salt water
exposure.
Corrosion means the breaking down of essential properties in a
material due to chemical reactions with its surroundings. In the
most common use of the word, this means a loss of electrons of
metals reacting with water and oxygen. Weakening of iron due to
oxidation of the iron atoms is a well-known example of
electrochemical corrosion. This is commonly known as rust. This
type of damage usually affects metallic materials, and typically
produces oxide(s) and/or salt(s) of the original metal. Corrosion
also includes the dissolution of ceramic materials and can refer to
discoloration and weakening of polymers by the sun's ultraviolet
light.
Most structural alloys corrode merely from exposure to moisture in
the air, but the process can be strongly affected by exposure to
certain substances. Corrosion can be concentrated locally to form a
pit or crack, or it can extend across a wide area to produce
general deterioration. While some efforts to reduce corrosion
merely redirect the damage into less visible, less predictable
forms, controlled corrosion treatments such as passivation and
chromate-conversion will increase a material's corrosion
resistance.
Examples of different types of corrosion: General corrosion Pitting
Galvanic corrosion
Further, the robot needs to be explosion safe which means that it
generates limited amount of energy and heat in all electrical
motors to avoid sparks. Further, the robot manipulator has to be
IP67 certified which means that it is completely protected from
intrusion of dust (including other small objects) and it is water
resistant (no ingress of water when immersed up to 1 meter).
Finally, the robot is protected from influences from extreme
temperatures (high and/or low) and wind. The protection may consist
of coating(s) (such as for IP67 certified robots), overpressure in
the motors and/or heating/cooling of the motors. Alternatively, the
protection of the robots may be in form of a heating/cooling jacket
which may also be water resistant (the robot manipulator may still
be water proof due to condensation, etc.
OBJECTS AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The object of the present invention is to provide a robot for a
hash outdoor environment.
This object is achieved by a robot is designed to resist salt water
in a harsh environment.
According to one aspect of the invention this object is achieved
with a method comprises regularly washing off the salt water from
the robot.
This invention describes a harsh-approved manipulator developed for
harsh outdoor environments with a focus on being protective against
corrosion and other damages from salt water. The novelty of this
method is that the robot manipulator is a standardized industrial
robot with electrical motors which is further developed to operate
under harsh climate conditions where it is exposed to salt water,
which may have a corrosive effect on the robot.
It is proposed to implement robotics technology on oil & gas
installations together with a redesign of the process equipment
into compact standardized process modules. This novel concept will
result in a remotely operated oil & gas facility capable of
conducting inspection, maintenance and normal operational tasks and
hence, improve HSE, industrial Health and Safety Executive i.e.
reduce or remove issues of workplace safety. Also, the need for
facilities for staff offshore will be reduced radically, which
means lower weight of the platform and less investment costs.
Further, this technological solution has the potential to reduce
operational costs, thus increasing the profitable lifetime of the
facility.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
Embodiments of the invention will now be described, by way of
example only, with particular reference to the accompanying
drawings in which:
FIG. 1 is a representation of an industrial robot mounted on a rail
or gantry the example shown being related to an oil production
platform according to an embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 2 is a representation of an industrial robot mounted on a rail
or gantry showing a close up of the robot arm arranged with a
camera according to another embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 3 is a representation of an industrial robot mounted on a rail
or gantry arranged for inspection or monitoring or maintenance of a
process section with tank, pumps and piping related to an oil
production platform according to another embodiment of the
invention;
FIG. 4 is a representation of an industrial robot with parts of the
robot indicated adapted to resist a harsh environment according to
another embodiment of the invention;
FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an industrial robot mounted on a
rail or gantry showing a washing booth into which the robot may be
moved for washing and/or coating with anti corrosion fluid,
according to another embodiment of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS OF THE INVENTION
The main benefits of the new concept are significant reduction of
CAPEX (capital expenditure), OPEX (operating costs) and
construction time. To achieve this, the following solutions and
technologies are fundamental: Modular process ("Lego"), designed
for interactions with robotics technology Compact process equipment
Use of gantry cranes Use of onshore control facilities Mobile decks
(avoid scaffolding, multiple decks) Use of robotics for
maintenance, inspection, safety and logistics operations
Visualization technology for support during design, construction
and operation with emphasize on robotics operation
This invention concerns a method for protecting an industrial robot
against salt water and particularly, corrosion and other potential
damages as a consequence of exposure to salt water. The manipulator
arm and the cable between the manipulator and the controller are
exposed for the harsh requirements. The controller and the teach
pendant may be built in a safe shell, or protected otherwise, and
kept away from salt water. There are particularly two parts of the
robot which need protection as these parts are vulnerable to
corrosion and otherwise will suffer from the salt water. These are
the robot arm itself and the joints including motors, bearings,
etc. Conventional manipulator arms are often made of a metal, which
may corrode and/or oxide. Stainless steel, plastic or other
composite materials avoid this problem. The joints including motors
and bearings are also critical to protect against salt water.
Corrosion is a problem, but the salt crystals also have the
potential to damage bearings and other mechanical constructions
when entering into these. Unlike (grinding) dust, salt crystals are
larger and have a different shape. The crystals may, for example,
sit as a layer inside the bearings and prevent the balls from
rolling freely. In other applications, small objects do not
represent the same problems.
FIG. 1 shows an industrial robot 1 mounted hanging down from a rail
2 or gantry and arranged mounted on a carriage 4 which is moveable
along the gantry in the direction shown by arrow X. The industrial
robot 1 is of the 6-axis type. The figure shows a base 6 holding
the first joint axis and shows a tool holder 5 on the end of the
robot arm. Cabling 3 is arranged suitable to allow the robot to
move along the gantry back and forwards in the X axis of the
gantry.
FIG. 2 shows the industrial robot 1 which has a first joint 9 in
the base 6 which allows rotation about a vertical axis. A joint 10
is shown indicated. The metal parts of joints that are exposed to
the air may coated with metal alloys or with thin film coatings to
resist salt water corrosion. The metal alloys or thin film coatings
may comprise alloys or compounds containing metals such as
titanium, chromium or nickel. The industrial robot 1 arm or
manipulator arm has a camera 12 mounted at the tool holder 5. The
camera is arranged to display a view at or around the tool centre
point for a remote operator, and may be arranged moveable to point
or focus at objects in other positions.
FIG. 3 shows a test installation for a process section suitable for
an oil and gas extraction or production installation. It shows a
tank 17, process piping 15, a pump 16 and an industrial robot 1
mounted on a gantry 2 above the process section. Thus the robot may
be moved to different points in the process section to point a
camera for inspection purposes or to carry out a limited range of
maintenance tasks.
FIG. 4 shows an industrial robot adapted to resist a harsh
environment. It shows that the drive motors for moving each part of
the arm may be arranged as pressurized motors 21 to prevent the
ingress of surrounding air into the motors to reduce the risk of
fire or an explosion. The balancing unit 23 may also be
pressurized. The exposed metal parts of the robot are coated with a
corrosion resistant layer such as a 3-layer epoxy coating 22 to
protect the parts from corrosion or other chemical attack. The
electronics parts 26 are sealed off from the environment. Parts of
the arms or joints are arranged with stainless steel covers 25. The
wrist 24 which normally holds a toolholder or a tool is a wrist
with corrosion-resistant metal parts and bearings sealed against
ingress of water or dust.
FIG. 5 shows schematically a washing and/or coating booth W for an
industrial robot. The booth may comprise an enclosure 31 shown here
as a box with dashed lines. This "box" may be open and may have
curtains or doors to close off the booth. Washing heads or spray
heads 32, 33 etc are arranged to wash down the industrial robot.
Different washing fluids may be used. One or more air jets may also
be included to blow of dirt and salt and/or to dry the robot.
Coatings may be applied using one or more fixed or moveable spray
heads in the washing booth W. Corrosion resistant coatings may be
applied as a liquid, an emulsion or a gel-like layer. Salt water
resistant coatings are described below.
This invention describes three different approaches regarding how
to protect the robot from salt water which are to: Avoid salt water
Allow salt water Protect with salt water
The first approach is about protecting the robot from direct
exposure of salt water. Methods for this approach include different
types of coatings and other physical barriers between the robot and
salt water.
The second approach allows salt water to get in (limited) contact
with the robot. These methods comprise periodically cleaning of the
parts which have been exposed to salt water.
The third type of methods takes an unconventional approach as the
goal of these methods is to protect the robot with salt water.
There are different types of corrosion. Apart from galvanic
corrosion, both (salt) water and air in contact with the metallic
surface result in corrosion.
The following list presents different ways of protecting the robot:
1. (Salt) water proof coating and/or film 2. Robot cover/jackets 3.
Nano particles to reject water 4. Rubber covers around the joints
and other inputs/outputs 5. Over pressurized air inside robot arm
6. Robot coating booth to regularly apply new coating/film to the
robot 7. Robot coater 8. Robot washing booth to regularly wash off
the salt water 9. Robot washer 10. Air jets to blow off dirt
including salt crystals 11. Coating consisting of nano particles
which tie up salt water to continuously cover the robot manipulator
with a thin layer of salt water
Several of the proposed methods may be applied to the robot to
protect all parts properly from different types of damages and
problems caused by the exposure to salt water. 1: This solution
suggests painting/covering the robot arm and other parts of the
robot with a layer of coating, or film, which is salt water
resistant. Such a coating will prevent salt water from getting in
contact with the material of the robot arm and from entering the
robot arm. Such a layer of coating will typically be damaged when
the surface (e.g. the layer of coating) has got a scratch. On the
surface of stainless steel, there is a thin film which protects it
from oxidation. 2: A robot cover or jacket covers the entire
manipulator arm and protects the arm from salt water. In addition,
a robot cover may also protect against dust, wind, water, etc. The
robot cover may further provide functionality such as heating
and/or cooling. Also, over-pressurized air inside the robot cover
prevents damp. 3: This method proposes to cover the manipulator arm
with a layer of nano particles which reject salt water and prevent
salt crystals to be attached to the surface. 4: This method
concerns how to protect the joints from intrusion of salt water. A
rubber cover or bellows which is elastic and follows the robot's
movements is mounted around each joint and glued/welded to the
robot arm to avoid intrusion of salt water. This method may be
combined with other methods to protect against corrosion of the
robot arm as well as to avoid condensed water/damp inside the robot
arm. 5: Instead of "sealing" the joints, this method suggests to
apply over-pressurized air within the robot arm to avoid water and
particularly salt water (and other small particles) from
intruding/entering through joints and other small openings such as
inlets and outlets of cables (electrical, (pneumatic) air, fluids,
etc.). Similarly, the air will prevent damp inside the robot arm.
Another possible function of the air is to control the temperature
of the air to keep it within a certain range in case of either very
low or very high outdoor temperatures. 6: This method is based on
the "car washing machine" principle. A coating booth, W which the
robot arm enters regularly, sprays a new coating/film onto the
surface. A precondition is that the coating/film needs to be redone
and that it is environmental and cheap in order to be used
regularly. The coating booth may be shaped as a box with the
minimum inner dimensions of the robot. Alternatively, it can be a
pipe with the length and dimensions of the robot arm. When the
robot is freed up from other tasks, it enters the coating booth
(regularly, but not too often) and gets a new coating. 7: Instead
of a booth, this method suggests that the robots do the coating of
each other. It requires that at least two robots are freed up from
other activities at the same time. One of the robots picks up a
spray gun and sprays/"paints" the other robot, and vice versa (in
case both robots need new coating). To avoid any environmental
problems due to the spraying, it may take place in a specific
(protected) area where the vast of the coating can be collected. 8:
In case the manipulator arm only is exposed for limited amount of
salt water or damp/humidity including salt, a solution is to use a
robot water cleaning system. Robot washing booth W based on the
"car washing machine" principle is a booth similarly to the one
described in method 6. Instead of applying a new layer of
coating/film, it cleans the manipulator arm with clean water,
eventually with added detergent to keep the surface clean and free
from salt crystals. 9: Similar to 7 this method describes how to
use the robot itself to water clean another robot as an alternative
to the "robot washing booth". 10: This method suggests to use air
jets to blow off salt water and particularly, salt crystals from
the surface of the robot manipulator. The air jets may be located
inside a booth W as suggested in 6 and 8. 11: Instead of keeping
salt water away, this method takes a different approach as it
proposes to cover the manipulator arm with a layer of nano
particles which tie up salt water. The robot surface is then
covered with a complete layer of salt water but not exposed to the
air. This may prevent some types of corrosion to occur.
The invention describes a harsh-approved manipulator developed for
harsh outdoor environments with a focus on being protective against
corrosion and other damages from salt water. The robot manipulator
is a standardized industrial robot with electrical motors which is
further developed to operate under harsh climate conditions where
it is exposed to salt water. The manipulator arm and the cable
between the manipulator and the controller are exposed for the
harsh requirements. Particularly, all openings including joints,
cables and tubes going through the surface, are critical to protect
to avoid salt water, or damped salt water, from entering the inside
of the robot arm. The controller may be built in a safe shell and
kept in a less harsh location. This invention proposes several
different ways of protecting the robot manipulator from corrosion.
Basically, corrosion from salt occurs most intense where metal is
exposed to a combination of salt water and air. Material being
completely covered by salt water all the time is less vulnerable
for corrosion. The invention is based on three different approaches
to the problem: To prevent contact between salt water and the robot
or the vulnerable parts of the robot, to allow contact between salt
water and the robot, and to expose the robot continuously with salt
water. Some of the methods may protect either the robot arm from
corrosion or the joints from salt crystals.
This invention describes a remotely operated harsh approved robot
manipulator for use in environments which are normally dangerous,
difficult and/or impossible for humans to access.
Inspection of Infrastructure on Offshore Installations
Future offshore installations are planned to be (partly) unmanned.
The process is redesigned into standardized process modules built
upon each other into process racks. A number of robots are mounted
on (at least) two gantry cranes which allow full access to the
entire process. These robots are remotely operated from onshore (or
a neighbor platform or ship). As the field operators are removed
from the platform, the operators in the operation centre still need
to inspect the process equipment and infrastructure and will use
the robots for this task. Some of the inspection tasks are
performed automatically whereas others need human intervention.
Some tasks may be controlled remotely by one or more people on
shore, ship and/or other platform. Control and/or communication
elements may be arranged at the remote location where people can
remotely control and communicate with the robots. Such remote
operation may be carried out with any number of tasks. For example,
robots including one or more protection features and included in an
installation for extraction or production of petroleum products and
arranged for carrying out monitoring and maintenance instructions
may be remotely operated by people on ship, shore and/or other
platform. The robot(s) may hold different sensors such as cameras
12 (video, IR, etc.), temperature gauge, vibration sensors, gas
detectors, etc. The robots may be exposed for a rough environment
including risk of explosions, (salt) water, extreme temperatures
and wind.
Light Maintenance Operations on Offshore Installations
This scenario is based on the same concept as described above. The
robotics system is further set up to perform light maintenance
tasks on the process equipment such as to replace a pipe section or
a valve and to place and collect wireless instrumentation. The
robots are exposed for a rough environment including risk of
explosions, (salt) water, extreme temperatures and wind.
Sample Taking on Offshore Installations
On an offshore drilling installation and/or production
installation, there is a large need for sample taking. Some
existing platforms struggle with very thick oil, almost like tar. A
harsh-approved robot can perform the taking of samples and automate
this task to reduce the risks on humans. The robot for this
scenario is exposed for a rough environment including risk of
explosions, (salt) water, extreme temperatures and wind.
Drilling and Other Operations on Onshore High-Sulfate Fields
Some onshore oil and gas fields contain sulfate which make it
impossible for people to work unprotected in these areas. Robotized
solutions are demanded for inspection and different operation tasks
to be able to operate in such areas. The robots are exposed for a
rough environment including different chemicals. The robot
manipulator may be protected from such chemicals based on one, or
more, of the proposed methods.
Inspection and Maintenance Operations of Offshore Windmills
Another offshore application is inspection and maintenance tasks of
offshore windmills. Most tasks may be inside the windmills housing,
but the damped air will still contain salt crystals.
This invention describes a number of methods to protect the robot
arm from corrosion and the joints from entering of salt water. One
or more methods may be used in combination to give full protection.
The invention makes operations possible in harsh, offshore
environments. The invention expands usage of existing industrial
robot configuration with electrical motors to offshore
environments, or similar environments with corrosive
challenges.
* * * * *